


How About That Drink?

by georgina_bulsara



Series: A Series of Tropes in Broadchurch [1]
Category: Broadchurch
Genre: Bake Off and chill, Blind Date, Characters very much enjoying food, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Matchmaking, Meddling daughter, Post-Season/Series 03, Slow Burn, To Be Continued, a sprinkle of angst because this is alec hardy and he resides in broodchurch, let the yearning commence, slow-ish burn I guess, spoilers for the whole show probably, there are no interesting cases in broadchurch at the moment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-20
Updated: 2019-10-06
Packaged: 2020-10-21 14:49:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20695343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/georgina_bulsara/pseuds/georgina_bulsara
Summary: Daisy realises that her father and Ellie Miller are a perfect match for each other, but she knows they will deny it if she tries to push them together. So, Daisy concocts a plan to get Ellie and Alec to go on a blind date with each other





	1. Daisy has a revelation

**Author's Note:**

> Hello hello, this is the first fanfiction I've attempted writing since I got three terrible chapters into an Artemis Fowl fanfic back in 2009....so bear with me, because since then I've written exclusively for academic purposes. Broadchurch has just got me feeling some type of way, and it's enough to drive me to try writing
> 
> This is essentially set right after series 3, but I'm sort of ignoring the difficulties Daisy encountered in Broadchurch, mainly because I thought it was really uncharacteristic for Hardy to go on a date while his daughter was going through such a tough time. So this Daisy is perfectly content in Broadchurch and hasn't been harassed by little prick classmates. Sorry it's a tad short

Daisy Hardy gets home before her dad on most days, and today is no different. She slings her bag onto the kitchen floor and heads straight for the fridge, hoping _someone_ in this house was in a right enough mind to stock up on snacks. Predictably, there is nothing of interest. A head of lettuce, some carrot shavings, a drop of balsamic vinaigrette, milk on the cusp of its expiration date, and half an apple is all that is not obviously expired. On the counter there’s some stale bread and a box of tea bags. 

Daisy groans, silently cursing both herself and her dad for being so dysfunctional when it comes to staying on top of the groceries. She makes a cup of tea and dejectedly brings it into her room with a piece of toast. After considering sending a strongly-worded text to berate her father, she settles for making a grocery list instead, and puts on some Beatles. She has homework to catch up on, but it can wait. 

\---

Daisy hears voices coming from the kitchen, which startles her for two reasons—her dad is hardly ever home before dinnertime, and when he does come home, he is always alone and disgruntled. She certainly doesn’t expect to hear light-hearted laughter before 6 p.m. Since it’s such a rare occurrence (has she ever even heard him truly laugh?), Daisy is hesitant to interrupt, and instead decides to go the sleuthing route. She tiptoes out of her room and as far down the hallway as she can go without being seen. 

As she deduced, the other voice chuckling alongside her father’s is DS Miller’s. Daisy is accustomed to Ellie spending time in their house, but it’s usually to discuss a case, and often past the time Daisy has retired to her room for the night. She always thought Miller seemed warm and friendly, if not a little worse for wear these past few months following the closing of the Trish Winterman case. For once, it seems Ellie is not there to bounce ideas around and bicker with Hardy about work. From the interactions she’s heard before, Daisy would guess that Hardy and Miller can’t stand each other, and only put up with the other’s bullshit for the purposes of work. Now, however, they don’t sound quite so professional or hostile. 

“Did you see her face when I told her I had been sleeping right next to the criminal throughout the investigation?! You’d’ve thought I’d said I’d found a way to go back in time and prevent the crime in the first place!” Miller guffaws and is soon joined by Hardy’s hesitant chuckles. 

When the laughter eventually fades out, Hardy says, “Well, I’m glad you can laugh about that a little now…”

“The alternative is crying, so… if I can find some humour in it, I will.”

“Trust you to look on the bright side.”

They are both silent for a moment, perhaps the gravity of Miller’s situation sinking back in. “So your dad moved back to Cornwall, did he?” Hardy finally says.

“Yeah, he was tired of it here, plus I was sort of tired of him. But now I’ll have to find more options for childminding… I don’t quite trust Tom looking after Fred yet, plus Tom is really busy with football these days. Hopefully Chloe will be OK with watching Fred for a modest fee for the time being.” 

This is enough eavesdropping for Daisy, as she’s already heard how relaxed and at ease her dad sounds. She grins, retreating back to her room to immediately text Chloe Latimer, who she has gotten to be very close friends with in the past month. 

_D: do u babysit for Ellie miller? _

__

__

_ C: sometimes yeah, why? _

There’s a knock on Daisy’s door and she looks up to see Hardy, still in his suit but with the tie removed. “Working on your maths homework, I presume?” Daisy is abysmal with anything involving numbers. 

“About to, yeah,” she replies, putting her phone down. “You’re home early,” she comments. 

“It’s been pretty slow at work, which is a nice change,” he replies, looking fairly content for once. 

She smiles at him. “So how was your date the other week, Dad? You never did tell me. Are you going to go out with her again now that your schedule’s freed up?”

Hardy suddenly looks less at ease and shifts uncomfortably. “Erm… yeah, it was alright. Don’t know if we really clicked though.”

“But you definitely are looking to date someone? Go on some more dates? Get back out there?”

Hardy is clearly not down to discuss his dating life with his daughter. “How about you focus on your schoolwork and I’ll focus on my own… problems,” he says. 

“So what I’m hearing is that you need help finding another date,” Daisy replies cheekily. 

“No!” Although Hardy let Daisy push him into going on the last date, he regrets mentioning that to the nice woman he’d had dinner with. 

“Ok, well you know I’m still going to set you up with someone, right? You need to get out more, Dad.” Hardy rolls his eyes and groans. “What about Ellie Miller?”

At this suggestion, Hardy appears even more disgruntled. “What?” he retorts after a moment of stunned confusion. He shakes his head. “She’s a colleague, Daisy. Ridiculous,” he mutters, and stomps off down the hall. Daisy smirks and picks up her phone again.

_D: ok, i’m going to need you to accept when she asks you again. she and my dad neeed to get together and i have a plan to make it happen. you had better be on board_


	2. The Matchmaking Committee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe and Daisy begin their plans for operation Hardy/Miller Blind Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter still focuses on the youths, but have no fear, Alec and Ellie will soon be back. 
> 
> How old are these kids? What do teenage boys act like? Don't ask me.  
The aging is probably like way off in the actual show as well, so I'm just going to go with Lizzie being ~3, Fred ~5, Chloe and Daisy ~17, and Tom ~15.

Tom stomps clumsily through the door of his house, his football boots leaving behind clumps of dried mud and grass that Ellie will scold him for later. With his earbuds in, blasting Eminem that can be heard by anyone within a five-foot radius, he doesn’t notice that there are three more people than usual in the living room. It doesn’t startle him when he walks by, though, and he simply takes one earbud out to grunt a hello to the gathering of women in the room. 

Chloe is sitting between Fred and Lizzie on the sofa, DVD at the ready. Beth and Ellie both have their purses and coats in their arms, ready to go out. 

“Tom, come back here a moment,” Ellie says as he makes a move for the stairs. “Beth and I are going to the cinema, so Chloe’s going to stay here and look after Fred and Lizzie. There’s a frozen lasagne warming up, make sure you leave enough for everyone to have some!”

“Ok.”

“Do you homework, take a shower, and don’t watch too much telly,” Ellie says as Tom starts walking away again. 

“Yup,” comes his slightly unenthusiastic reply. 

“Loye you!” she adds before turning to Beth. “Ready?” Beth nods and they both fawn over their children a bit longer before heading out the door.

\---

Freshly out of the shower, Tom comes downstairs for the sole purpose of getting a healthy serving of lasagne before going back to his room to play video games and maybe do some homework. This quest proves more difficult than he planned, however, as Chloe, Fred, and Lizzie have taken up residence around the kitchen table, blocking the way to the food. Just as Tom is trying to maneuver his way around Fred and Lizzie’s flailing arms, the doorbell rings. 

“Ooh, perfect timing,” says Chloe as she darts to the front door. Tom looks after her confused. Chloe comes back to the kitchen accompanied by a taller girl, in comfortable clothing, with a container of ice cream under her arm. “Tom, you know Daisy Hardy, right?”

“Not really,” he says, but he nods in her direction to acknowledge her. “You’re not about to host a party here, are you? My mum would be properly angry if she found out.”

Daisy replies before Chloe can open her mouth. “Pshh, no, of course not! Do I look like I’m dressed for a party?” she snickers. “I’m here for our matchmaking meeting,” she beams with a glint in her eye. “And we’ll need you to be a member of the committee, if you don’t mind.”

“I’d rather not get involved, whatever it is,” Tom says. 

“Only members get to take part in the rocky road ice cream I’ve got, though,” Daisy says, holding out the ice cream enticingly. 

Tom considers. “I’ll give you five minutes of my precious time,” he concedes.

“We’ll talk fast,” says Chloe as she wipes tomato sauce from Lizzie’s chin and clears a spot at the table. 

\---

“So essentially, we need any information you have on your mum’s dating status, whether she’s open to blind dates, preferences in terms of restaurants, etc.” says Daisy with an official air of being very much in charge. 

“Are you going to tell me specifically what you’re trying to do?” Tom says in between spoonfuls of ice cream. 

Chloe and Daisy glance at each other, clearly some silent communication passing between them. “No, I think you have all the information you need,” explains Daisy. “All I want to know is if your mum seems like she could use a date, and if she would be OK with not knowing who that date is until she gets there.”

Tom has eaten his ice cream at an alarming pace and is almost done. He scoops up one of the last bits of melted rocky road, his favourite. “Hmm,” he muses, wiping at a sticky spot on the side of his mouth. “I don’t know how I should know. She’s my mum, we don’t discuss that sort of thing,” he says. “But I would say yes to the first question, and definitely no to the second question. I know she’s against dating apps and things like that.” 

Daisy purses her lips. “Thank you, Tom. That’s very helpful.” She dismisses him. “Obviously, your discretion is key.” 

Tom rolls his eyes and gets up from the table. “I honestly would rather not be involved at all,” he says. “Thanks for the ice cream.” He dollops a big piece of lasagne on a plate and retreats to his room, not planning on giving the impromptu meeting in the kitchen a second thought. 

\---

“How much longer do you think we have?” asks Daisy. 

“I think we’re good for at least 40 minutes… _Call Me By Your Name_ is a pretty long movie, I think. And they’ll probably get a drink after,” Chloe says, checking her phone. 

“Great,” says Daisy, dipping her spoon into the now very soft ice cream one last time before closing the lid. She turns to Fred and Lizzie, playing with scraps of food. “Aren’t you two lucky getting to stay up so late!” she says, kissing Lizzie’s cheek. Daisy and Chloe usher the kids back in front of the television, where they will inevitably fall asleep. 

“So do you agree with Tom?” asks Daisy, sitting cross-legged on the carpet. “Does Ellie seem like she’d probably not be too keen to go on a blind date?”

“Yeah. I mean, even from what my mum tells me about when they were younger, I think Ellie’s probably always been the type of person who takes a long time to work up to dating someone, even after they’re already friends.”

“Right, so that means we definitely need to find a way to get her to the date without even knowing it’s a date,” Daisy says pensively. “I can surely get my dad to agree to a blind date, honestly, he tries to hide it but he would go on more dates if he got asked.”

“What if I talked to my mum about it?” proposes Chloe. “They’ve gotten really close again, I think they talk about everything. If my mum got in on _our_ plan, she could just invite Ellie for drinks, maybe with the promise of introducing her to a potential candidate so she knows that it _could_ turn out to be a date. Then just have Ellie go alone and it be Hardy waiting there for her!” 

Daisy’s eyes widen. “Excellent plan, Chlo!” she exclaims. “Do you think your mum would be OK with misleading Ellie like that?”

“If she knew it was for a good cause, I don’t see why not,” replies Chloe. Daisy makes notes on her phone. “Wow, you’re really serious about this,” remarks Chloe.

“Yeah, well, y’know. I just want to make sure my dad is happy. I’ll be going away for university soon, and I want to know that he isn’t going to come home alone and wallow every night,” Daisy reasons. “And he seems happy around Ellie, but seeing as they’re a bit daft—they clearly need several nudges in the right direction.” 

Choe laughs. “The matchmaking committee is about to complete its first successful planning meeting! Who’d have thought.”

“Quite right,” says Daisy smugly. “I should probably leave now, just so we don’t ruin all our hard work by having Ellie walk in on our meeting.” 

“Just pop over to our house, and on the way home I’ll tell mum about the plan and she can drive you home,” says Chloe. 

“A new member!” squeals Daisy. _I may be getting a little too into this_, she thinks to herself. “See you in a bit, and of course I’ll keep you posted on our next steps.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading my self-indulgent horse shit! more coming when i find the time (hopefully quite soon). and yes, every chapter is going to have SEVERAL mentions of food in it because i for one LOVE writing about food  
let me know what you thought of the chapter, until next time! ;)


	3. Setting it up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plan moves forward for Ellie and Alec's blind date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is like all dialogue, i guess that's what i like to write!   
nothing much happens in this chapter, i didn't really plan this as a chapter but it wrote itself so here it is  
and i'm low-key starting to ship chloe and daisy!  
apologies for any errors, as i barely looked over this before posting  
enjoy!

Alec Hardy has finally found a healthier balance to work and life now that he doesn’t feel the need to work late every single night. It helps that there are currently no stressful cases going on in Broadchurch, which had gone through more than is customary for a town of its size in the past few years. He and Daisy even find the time to sit down and have dinner together when Daisy doesn’t have plans with friends. Finding her there waiting for him when he gets home from work warms his heart every time, no matter how taxing the day has been.

Tonight Hardy gets home a little later than usual due to some neglected paperwork that had become time-sensitive. He finds Daisy in the kitchen unloading an assortment of foods, some healthy and some clearly not. She turns to give him a peck on the cheek and a big smile. 

“I remembered to go to the supermarket after school today! Got a ride from Beth,” she says brightly. 

“Latimer?” asks Hardy, in typical clueless-dad fashion. 

“That’s the one,” Daisy replies, exerting herself not to mock him.

“Oh, have you been hanging out more with her daughter then? What was her name…??” says Hardy, vaguely remembering bumping into the girl on his way in once. 

Daisy gives him a pointed look. “Chloe.” Hardy nods and repeats the name immediately after her. 

“Good,” he says. “Glad you’ve made friends.” He helps her put away the tea and bread in the pantry. 

“Can’t say the same for you, can I?” Daisy opens a packet of Walkers crisps.

Hardy rolls his eyes. “Not again, Daisy.” 

“Speaking of which,” Daisy says, popping a crisp into her mouth, “I’ve set up a date for you! Another _friend_ of mine from school is actually in the same boat as me. Her mum is divorced and is looking to date.”

Hardy’s face is already showing the reluctance he’s about to express. “I didn’t ask—”

“C’mon Dad! At this rate I’m going to have to get you a cat to keep you company when I leave for uni!”

At the mention of Daisy’s inevitable departure in the not-so-distant future, Hardy softens. Although he knows that it’s only natural for her to leave the small town for university, Hardy’s absence during a good portion of her teenage years makes it feel unfair to him. “Alright, darlin’,” he says, giving in. “I’ll go on the...date. If it’ll make you happy and get you to stop wittering on about it.” 

Daisy smiles widely and gives him a tight hug. “It’ll be fun, Dad, don’t stress about it.” She pulls away and surveys the food on the counter. “Could you make salmon for dinner?”

Hardy is feeling properly soppy and fatherly now, so he tells her, “Aye, anything you like,” and goes about gathering the ingredients without, of course, bothering to take off his work clothes. 

\---

Daisy sits in the living room while Hardy cooks, typing furiously on her phone. 

_D: got dad to agree to the date. told him a mate from school was looking for someone to date their mum haha   
any news from your mum about ellie? _

_C: haa amazing!_

The flickering dots indicate that Chloe is typing a rather long message. Daisy gets impatient and darts into the kitchen to grab a few more crisps and make a show of getting a good waft of the salmon. 

“Who’re you texting over there?” asks Hardy as he inspects the potatoes he’s boiling for mash. 

“Just Mum,” Daisy lies. She had been giving Tess some life updates, but there’s no need for her dad to get suspicious over what she’s been texting Chloe about. 

Hardy shoots her a dark look. “She’s not in anyway involved with all this dating nonsense, is she?”

“No, Dad! Not everything revolves around you, y’know,” she chides him. “I was just updating her on school and my friends.” Daisy’s phone dings. 

“Alright, alright,” Hardy grunts. Daisy has already transferred her attention to her phone screen. 

_C: so: my mum says that she and ellie have already talked about ellie going on a date with this bloke my mum knows from work a couple times. ellie didn’t sound that keen at first, but she mentioned it when they were at the movie the other night. mum says she thinks ellie would definitely say yes to an informal date if my mum set it all up _

Daisy grins down at her phone. “Good news from mum?” Hardy inquires. 

“Nah, just a funny meme from a mate,” says Daisy. Hardy is about to ask embarrassingly what a meme is when Daisy skips back into the living room to type a reply. 

\---

By the next week, Daisy, Chloe, and Beth have made great strides in their matchmaking plot. Both Hardy and Miller believe they are going to have drinks with someone they’ve never met before on Wednesday. Hardy isn’t thrilled about it, and he’s feeling anxious already on Tuesday. Ellie is looking forward to her date apprehensively, but she’s a little on edge at work. They both go through the day eyeing each other suspiciously, but not daring to ask if anything’s wrong. 

Finally it’s nearing the end of the day and their co-workers are starting to file out of the office. On his way back from the kitchen to clean his heavily-used tea mug, Hardy stops by Miller’s desk. 

“How about that drink, then? Since we never go to the pub, we could go…” Hardy begins to trail off when he sees Ellie’s face. 

“Were you not there Friday when we all went out to the pub?” She squints up at him. “You may never go to the pub, Hardy, but _I_ certainly am no stranger.” She isn’t quite snapping, but Hardy can tell she’s either tired, grumpy, or mad at him for something he’s painfully unaware of. He stares at her blankly while weighing his options for a response that won’t make matters worse. “Since when do you want to go out for a drink, anyway? On a Tuesday, no less.”

“I… erm,” Hardy falters, eyes searching around the room. “Daisy… Daisy’s been encouraging me to make more time for friends,” he mutters.

Ellie narrows her eyes and crosses her arms. “Last time you used Daisy as an excuse _not_ to have drinks.”

“It… it was just because I hadn’t seen her as much because of the case. She doesn’t mind, actually.” Hardy plunges his clenched fists deep into his pockets. 

“Well, while I’m thrilled and impressed that you’ve finally come to your senses about the pub, I’m not really feeling it tonight. I’ve been out a lot recently, and I’m going out again tomorrow. Besides, Bake-Off’s on tonight and I really just want to relax at home and watch it.” She starts organising the papers on her desk and packing up her things. “You could just come to my place and watch telly, though! And tell Daisy you’ve been out on the town being sociable.” 

Hardy considers the option. He would much rather spend the evening away from a crowded room of happy and loud people, and he has nothing to do at home since Daisy has plans with Chloe. He nods with a quietly affirmative grunt. “Should I… bring anything?” he asks tentatively. 

Ellie smiles. “There’ll be no need for wine or chocolates. If you have any cakes or tarts, that would be welcome though. Watching Bake-Off always makes me mad for a good treacle tart.” 

Hardy crinkles his nose ever so slightly. “How about I just bring some digestive biscuits or something a little more healthy.”

“Suit yourself,” Miller replies. “Just don’t be surprised if I have the sudden urge to bake a cake.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! let me know what you think :)  
and thanks to all who have been commenting


	4. Getting Ready

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The blind date is set up for tomorrow, but tonight Ellie and Alec will be spending time together anyway. POV of Ellie and Alec as they get ready for the evening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this was meant to just be the first part of a longer chapter, but since it's ready and I haven't written the next bit yet, I'm going to post. Everything I start writing for this story ends up getting drawn out and goes in a different direction than I expected anyway!
> 
> thanks again for reading, hope you enjoy!

Ellie is used to Hardy refusing invitations to the pub and never judges him for it. She’s gotten used to his many quirks, and even finds humour in his dry witticisms. Not many other people appreciate his personality, and she has come to accept that maybe they really are platonic soulmates, since no one quite understands her like he does either. Not since Joe’s trial, anyway. Even though he still won’t explain what happened in the years of silence that passed after solving the Sandbrook case, she’d like to think that there are very few secrets between them. Which is the reason why they work so well together, and manage to get loads of work done outside of the office, with fewer distractions from nosy coworkers. 

So, Ellie does not think it in any way out of the ordinary to have Hardy round for dinner on a Tuesday night; they can look through case files with Bake Off on in the background. They’ve done it many times before, and quite frankly the frantic baking and harsh judging spurs them on, leading them to conclusions faster. 

Of course, there is also this blind date tomorrow, that secretly Ellie is glad to have a reason not to think about tonight. Beth had been _extremely_ vague in telling her any information about the bloke she’d set Ellie up with. All Beth said was that he was caring, attractive, and attentive. _Whatever_, Ellie thinks to herself as she is leaving the office. _If Hardy can go on dates and still manage to function normally at work, surely I can do it, too._

Needless to say, Miller has yet to hear any real confirmation that Hardy has been seeing anyone, but given his complete and utter reluctance to talk about it, she figures that must be what it is. He shares pretty much everything else with her. Still, she finds it hard to picture Hardy in a laid-back setting, chatting up a woman. She tries to imagine what he could possibly talk about, how he would act being flirted with. Abysmally, she’s sure of it. How he ever even managed to get married is a mystery to her. Although, there is _some_ charm to his brood, she concedes. 

She is jerked out of her internal monologue by nearly running into someone’s trolley as she rounds the corner of the baking aisle. “So sorry!” she spurts out to a disgruntled busybody who is already out of sight. Ellie chastises herself for allowing such a distraction to take hold of her. Now she’s late to pick up Fred, and only has 45 minutes until Hardy shows up. She hastily orients herself in the supermarket and heads to the front. 

\---

Hardy is feeling even more anxious than usual, and he’s not sure he can entirely blame it on the looming date tomorrow. At home waiting until it’s time to leave for Miller’s, he looks forlornly at his reflection in the mirror. He adjusts his tie, then, having a second thought, removes it entirely and smoothes down his shirt. There are bags under his eyes and his hair is unkempt—but that’s nothing new. He makes a futile attempt to smooth his hair over with his palm, then splashes water on his face. 

He can’t shake the tightness in his chest that is clearly linked to his evening plans, but he finds himself unable to figure out why. Part of him feels as if this is the end of something—the last time he will be able to go over to Miller’s under the pretence of discussing work. Even though they usually do discuss a case, Hardy has become very attached to the chats they have about everything but work, which they can’t really indulge in at the office. He knows that just because he might start going on more dates, it doesn’t have to mean he won’t be able to make time for Miller. But the tiny outline of a doubt keeps on creeping into the back of his mind as much as he tries to repress it. 

Although he has yet to fully admit it to himself, the only reason he came back to Broadchurch, in truth, was because he missed their dynamic. If Miller hadn’t been here, he would’ve turned right around and gone somewhere else. Hardy could’ve gone anywhere, but only in Broadchurch could Ellie Miller tell him off for being a wanker and he still put up with it. 

Lost in his worries, Hardy finds himself in the kitchen with his hands on his hips. It’s his week to go to the supermarket, and looking into the fridge, he realises he’s done an absolute shit job. He’s forgotten nearly everything that makes food enjoyable, while remembering to stock up only on the dullest ingredients. Obviously he can’t bring salad material to Miller’s, and she would probably throttle him if he brought bread for toast. Hardy groans, considering the possibility of turning up empty-handed as opposed to bringing multiple uninspiring items. Looking at his watch, he becomes more frantic (he detests being late) and searches the kitchen in desperation. 

In the pantry, partially hidden behind a box of rice, he spots the corner of a purple wrapper. Clearly something that Daisy bought, he grabs it, hardly bothering to notice what it is. As long as it’s not healthy and doesn’t require significant cooking efforts, it’ll have to make do. He grabs his coat, fumbles for his keys, and heads out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no dialogue in this chapter, probably all dialogue in the next! thank you to everyone who reads <3


	5. Bake Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hardy and Miller annoy each other and eat food!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This whole fic may be just an excuse for me to vent about how much Paul Hollywood annoys me.   
Anyways, enjoy! This is a bit of a longer chapter. apologies for any errors

The Miller household is in its customary chaotic mess when Ellie arrives home with Fred and the groceries. Fred runs straight over to his toys and picks up a game of car racing right where he left off that morning—the living room floor is littered with them. Ellie sets down the bags on the kitchen floor and fills a big pot with water for pasta before going upstairs to change out of her work clothes. She loves the professionalism of a suit, but at home she values comfort above all else. Since Hardy is coming over, she opts for jeans rather than her usual tracksuit bottoms, and a blue jumper.

Back in the kitchen, Ellie frantically cleans up the remnants of a hurried breakfast, clears Tom’s notebooks from the table, and removes all tripping hazards left by Fred. She glances at the clock, and knowing that Hardy is almost always on the dot, she figures there’s only about a quarter of an hour til he arrives. She dumps the linguine into the boiling pot, then Fred comes tearing hungrily into the kitchen and she butters him some bread to tide him over until the pasta is ready. 

Just as she’s drained the pasta and poured a jar of marinara sauce into smaller pot, she hears Hardy’s tentative knock at the door. It’s a slightly cooler fall day, and the wind is sweeping away the leaves, as well as Hardy’s fringe when she opens the door to find him standing there with his hands clasped behind his back. 

“You walked here, then,” says Ellie, failing to see his car in the drive. Hardy nods, switching his hands to his pockets. She opens the door wider to let him in past her. “Where are the case files?” she asks, bemused. 

Hardy freezes by the coat rack, turning to look at her with a slightly stunned expression. “Er… didn’t bring any. Thought we didn’t have to talk about work,” he says, as if he is quite pained to have to verbalise what he assumes was a mutual understanding between them. 

After a brief pause, Ellie recovers. “Right, of course we don’t. We hardly ever do even when you do bring work, thanks to this monster, anyhow,” she says as Fred whizzes past them from the kitchen into the living room. “I hope you’re still OK with watching Bake Off, though.” Ellie goes into the kitchen to check on the sauce. 

Hardy hangs up his coat and hesitantly removes the chocolate bar he’d found in the pantry from his pocket. He’s still torn between offering it to Miller and just forgetting about it and carrying on the evening like any other night when they might be talking about work. After humming and hawing at the threshold as Ellie sets up the table, he finally bites the bullet. 

“I know you said no chocolate… but I didn’t want to show up with nothing and this is all I could find to bring,” Hardy says, setting the bar of chocolate next to a bunch of overripe bananas on the counter. 

“Oh, you didn’t have to bring anything,” refutes Miller, “although I can’t say that I’d ever say no to chocolate.” She has already set the plates, sauce, and parmesan cheese on the table, and reaches now for two wine glasses. “Some red?” she offers. 

“Yes,” he replies. “Please.” Ellie serves the wine and motions for Hardy to sit down. “Thank you, Miller,” Hardy says, gesticulating at the spread. 

“Freddie, come in for dinner!” Ellie calls out, and Hardy is unsure if she’s heard his gesture of gratitude. She piles pasta onto two plates and brings them to the table, then puts some in a much smaller bowl for Fred. “I think this might be our fourth pasta-related dish in a row,” Ellie admits. “At least you can’t really fuck up pasta, can you?” 

“Nah,” says Hardy as he ladles sauce onto his plate. 

Fred joins them at the table and they have a pleasant enough dinner, with only a little bit of red tomato sauce making it from Fred’s bowl onto Hardy’s rumpled white shirt. Hardy helps clean up, and Ellie leaves him to it so she can get Fred to take a bath and wind down for bed. “Leave the pasta out, Tom’ll be home from his match soon and he’ll be ravenous,” she says as she steers Fred towards the stairs. 

\---

Ellie has finally managed to get Fred to bed. She comes back downstairs to find Alec leaning against the counter in the kitchen, chatting with Tom who is hunkered over the pasta in his muddied football kit. She stands in awe of this social interaction between two of the most anti-social people she knows. “How’d the match go?” she asks Tom. 

“We lost,” replies Tom through a mouthful of pasta, seemingly with no intention to elaborate further. “Are you gonna watch Bake Off?” 

“Yes!” Ellie lights up. “Do you want to join us?”

Tom baulks at the suggestion. “No, just wanted to know so I can go upstairs to play FIFA instead.”

Ellie smiles and shakes her head, glancing at Hardy. “Comes home from playing football to play more football,” she marvels. “Well, I’m going to put Bake Off on, it’s just started. Careful not to wake Fred,” she implores Tom as he stomps out of the kitchen.

Hardy follows Ellie into the living room and they sit down at opposite ends of the sofa. “I hope Daisy’s not home alone tonight,” Ellie says guiltily.

“She isn’t,” Hardy reassures her. “I think she’s at the Latimers…she told me she and Chloe were going to do schoolwork together, but I kinda doubt that.” 

“Are the two of them…” Ellie raises an eyebrow, “romantically involved in any way?” 

Hardy looks less ill-at-ease than she expects him to be at the mention of his daughter’s love life. He furrows his brow and looks as if this is probably the first thought he’s given to Daisy’s recent friendship with Chloe. “Erm… I dunno. Maybe. Daisy and I don’t really talk about that sort of thing,” he says, knowing full well that they most certainly do, but it is entirely one-sided. He would never dream of asking Daisy about the nature of her relationships. 

“Fair enough,” says Ellie, familiar enough with the awkwardness of breaching that sort of subject with her own son. She is even more aware that she would not like to discuss the date she’s promised Beth she’ll go on tomorrow. Even though in the past, Hardy seemed like a natural confidant when it came to embarrassing dating moments, it doesn’t seem appropriate anymore now that she actually is single. Nonetheless, she’d give anything to squeeze any information out of _him_—Hardy’s tight-lipped composure when it comes to his personal life makes it hard for her to know if he’s even interested in dating, not to mention doing it without her knowledge. 

On the TV screen, half a dozen bakers are frantically completing a frankly ridiculous technical challenge. It’s some outrageous bake from Tudor England that no one gives a fuck about anymore, or is even familiar with in the slightest. Since there are no case files to distract them, Hardy finds himself actually having to watch as the contestants scramble helplessly to put something presentable in front of the judges. Ellie tuts as Paul Hollywood prods at the inside of the cakes and proceeds to demolish each baker’s efforts. 

“What a dick,” muses Hardy. Ellie glances at him out of the corner of her eyes. 

“You’re just realising that now?”

“Well I never really paid attention before. I don’t know how anyone puts up with him.” 

“Oh yeah, I’d want to give him a slap to the face if he talked to me or any of my friends that way. But some people find that quite appealing, you know.”

“What, someone insulting you based on your ability to produce some stupid cake? How is that appealing?”

“I’m just saying, some women find it a bit of a turn-on. And they like his piercing blue eyes.”

“You’re taking the piss,” says Hardy, incredulous. Hollywood has just brought one baker to the verge of tears with his diagnosis of her cake’s faults. 

Ellie laughs. “No really, I have friends who are genuinely attracted to him. They like the fact that he’s hard to please, and he’s a bit cheeky. That’s some people’s type.”

“Are you telling me this because you’re secretly in love with Paul Hollywood?” 

“No, not even a little bit!” says Ellie, looking slightly insulted by the suggestion. “I think he’s a right prick. Makes for good telly, though. And it helps all the bakers bond together, so there’s less sense of animosity and competition between them.”

They watch in silence as the showstopper challenge is announced. Out of the blue, Ellie emits a stifled giggle. Hardy glances at her inquisitively, afraid he’s perhaps missed a Bake Off inside joke. “What?”

Ellie shakes her head at the thought she’s just had. “Nothing, it’s just, actually, you are sort of the Paul Hollywood of Broadchurch CID.”

Hardy’s baffled expression betrays his confusion. “How so?” he prompts, trying to will his palms to stop sweating at the thought of half the police force thirsting after him. Ellie is now fully laughing into her hands and takes too long to respond. “I’m not like him at all!” Hardy gestures at the screen. “I mean, look how horny he gets over all these bloody cakes!”

“Are you admitting to not liking food?”

“What? No, I’m just not sexually aroused by it!” Hardy’s cheeks have turned a deep shade of pink, and Ellie has been laughing so much that she’s also blushing. 

“No, I just mean that you’re the grumpy northerner who gets on everybody’s nerves, that’s all.” 

Hardy snorts in response. 

“Are you sick of living in the South? The never-ending sky, and whatnot.”

Hardy grimaces, aware that the conversation could turn towards unwanted territory if he’s not careful. “It’s fine,” he says. Ellie looks at him suspiciously.

“Fine enough for you to move back here for no reason, then.” 

“I am employed, Miller!” scoffs Hardy, mentally pleading her not to ask any more prying questions about why he’s back in Broadchurch. 

Thankfully, Ellie decides to drop it. “Right, well I’m revved up to bake something now. Are you sticking around?”

Hardy looks at his watch and shrugs. It’s only 9 p.m. “I’d be missing out on a miracle if you actually managed to bake something edible,” he jabs as he gets up to follow Ellie into the kitchen. 

“Wanker.”

\---

Fifteen minutes later, Hardy finds himself stirring an unappetizing mixture of overripe bananas, eggs, butter, milk, and sugar. They’ve decided on a banana loaf; or rather, the bananas stinking up the entire kitchen have decided for them. Ellie is chopping up the dark chocolate bar Hardy brought to add to the mixture. Once it’s in the oven without any serious mishaps, Ellie claps her flour-covered hands in Hardy’s face, sprinkling him with a light dusting of flour. “Oi!” he objects.

“Look who’s just baked a cake!” teases Ellie.

“There’s still time to royally fuck it up,” he cautions. Just as he swears, Tom slumps into the kitchen with his nose in the air. 

“What’s that smell?” Tom asks, while Ellie is still giving Hardy a withering look for his slip-up. 

“A perfectly good banana loaf,” says Ellie defensively. 

Sure enough, when it has sufficiently cooled after coming out of the oven, the three of them test it and confirm that the bake is quite satisfactory. Hardy dismisses his misgivings and congratulates Miller on the accomplishment.

“Well, I couldn’t have done it without my trusty baking companion,” she says, winking at him. Hardy is horrified to feel a faint flutter in his chest, and turns his eyes back to the cake. 

Ellie soon sends Tom off to bed and she and Hardy are left cleaning up. She insists on wrapping half of the remaining loaf for Hardy to take home and enjoy with Daisy. He gets a text from Daisy, informing him that she’s arrived safely back home, so he starts to head towards the door. 

“Thanks, Miller,” he says genuinely. “This was nice.” 

“We should bake together more often.” 

“Maybe take Daisy up on that offer…she’s much more keen on baking. I prefer cooking.”

“Well, we could make an entire feast! Invite some friends.”

Hardy falters as he puts on his coat. “Perhaps. See you tomorrow.”

“Walk safely!” Ellie calls out after him. She smiles to herself as she closes the door on a cold burst of wind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! let me know what you think


	6. Table for two (pt. 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> rip to anyone who thought this chapter would actually start with the date itself, including me  
this is a two-part chapter though! once again, it would be in one update, but i'd written this part already so i decided to split it  
Also, for fun, i’ve included nods to other shows i've recently watched, one in this part and another will be in the next part. see if you can spot them!!!!  
as always, thank you for reading, and let me know what you think :)

The morning of the rigged date between Hardy and Miller, Daisy gets up early as if it were Christmas Day and there was a specific gift she couldn’t wait to unwrap. From the window of their tiny house halfway up a hill, Daisy can see that it’s going to be a classically rainy autumn day in Broadchurch—the clouds are billowing in from the sea and shrouding the cliffs in a thick mist. 

Daisy goes over to the kitchen to fix breakfast and is surprised to find a chunk of cake wrapped in cling film on the counter. She slices some of it on a plate and puts it out with a pot of tea and the milk carton for when Hardy emerges. Sitting at the table, she goes through her phone to confirm that all the plans are still in place for tonight. Beth has made a reservation at an appropriate restaurant just outside of town—not overly swanky or romantic, but a pleasant place for a table for two. Chloe has accepted Ellie’s request for babysitting, and Daisy naturally plans on being there as well, although Ellie doesn’t know that. Tom has been informed to stay out of his mum’s way and be on his best behaviour. 

Hardy has spent more time in the shower than is customary, and when he finally ambles into the kitchen, they only have ten minutes until they have to leave the house and his hair is still quite damp. 

“Tea?” offers Daisy. Hardy takes the mug gratefully and puts on his tie while he waits for it to cool. “Where’d this cake come from? It’s pretty good.”

Hardy looks over at the slices of banana loaf and his memories of the previous night come swelling back to him in one big wave. His mind had been so distracted since he woke up that he completely forgot about baking with Miller the night before. He remembers what Miller told him about letting Daisy believe that he’d been socialising and making friends with people besides Ellie. 

“Erm… a coworker brought it in for a birthday do yesterday. Got leftovers.” Secretly, Hardy is glad to have Daisy’s approval of the banana loaf—goodness knows with him and Miller in charge, it could have easily been overbaked, underbaked, claggy, too sweet, or any number of other baking shortcomings. 

“Almost ready? I have to be at school soon. Oh, and remember I’m spending the night at the Latimer’s tonight, Chloe and I have to work on a history project.”

“Right,” says Hardy, gulping his tea. 

“So if you and your date want to come back here, it’ll be empty,” Daisy follows up, without batting an eyelid. Hardy gives her a pained look, but refuses to comment.  _ I highly doubt it’ll go that well,  _ he thinks to himself, trying not to let the nerves prematurely get to his already jittery stomach. 

Daisy puts on her raincoat and grabs her school bag, which is really more of an overnight bag today. The two of them head out to the car, with Hardy doubling back to grab his umbrella before they set off. 

\---

Ellie doesn’t want to attract attention at work, so she neatly lays out her meagre supply of makeup and chosen outfit for the evening on her bed to come home and change, at the risk of being a little late for the date. She walks into work as if it were any other day, on time, in her suit, and down to business. 

The work day is uneventful, but she does go into Hardy’s office to bother him during their lunch break. She’s packed leftover pasta from the night before. All Hardy has for brought is another slice of the famed banana cake loaf. 

“I see you’re depending on me for food now,” teases Ellie as he licks a bit of chocolate off his finger. 

“Nnngk,” is all that comes out as a reply. After a few more moments of eating in silence, Hardy says, “Daisy really liked it, by the way. Had some for breakfast. Top marks.” 

Elle’s face lights up at the mention of Daisy. “You should come over some time soon with her! Chloe could even come too, if that’s an incentive. I know Tom isn’t the most hospitable.” 

“Yeah, could be nice.” He doesn’t bother to make eye contact. Usually a week with more than one or two social engagements makes him want to turn down any invitations, but somehow it doesn’t feel like a taxing obligation if it’s Miller. 

“Are you alright, Sir?” She doesn’t say it, but he seems awfully curt today. 

“Don’t call me Sir,” Hardy mutters. “‘M fine.” Ellie narrows her eyes but doesn’t press the matter. 

The rest of the day passes by without incident and the dinner date approaches. Neither Hardy nor Miller want to take off even a little bit early, in case it arouses any suspicion about their possible evening plans to the other. But as soon as the time to clock out has arrived, they both make haste towards the door. Heading to her car, Ellie glances back and makes eye contact with Hardy, smiling briefly. She tries not to remember that one coworker she fancied back before she met Joe, but something about the shared glance with Hardy feels like déjà vu.

\---

It’s still raining as Ellie frantically gets ready to leave. Up in her bedroom, she can hear Chloe playing with Fred in the living room, and the rain pattering against the windows. She’s put on a scoop-neck blouse with sleek black trousers, and is hurriedly pinning her hair into a messy yet stylish bun. A brush of mascara, a dab of blush, and a pretty shade of lipstick, and she’s ready to agonise over which pair of earrings to wear. 

Ellie stumbles downstairs as she shoves her low heels on, five minutes before she needs to leave. Chloe has been watching Fred enough that she doesn’t need to talk her through the evening.

“I shouldn’t be back too late,” says Ellie as she kisses Fred. “And I’ll check in throughout the evening.”

“No need to worry, Ellie. Enjoy yourself.” 

“Thanks, Chlo. Alright, I’m off!” She grabs her coat and purse and is soon turning out of the main road leading out of Broadchurch. She hasn’t been to the restaurant before, but she knows where it is because she used to drive past it all the time when she was a WPC on traffic duty. It’s a cosy place that serves a combination of fresh local seafood and slightly more exotic Italian dishes. As she’s pulling into the car park, Ellie’s stomach rumbles and she thinks about what would be a good dish to order on a first date. 

It has momentarily stopped raining when she heads towards the doors of the restaurant, so she’s glad that forgetting an umbrella hasn’t screwed her over completely. She checks her text message chain with Beth again—her date is meant to be brown-haired and tall.  _ How very helpful, _ she thinks sarcastically. Thankfully, the table reservation will make finding him a lot simpler. 

“Table for two?” Ellie approaches the young woman working at the front. “I think the reservation was made by Beth Latimer.” 

The hostess leads her through the sea of tables, and Ellie suddenly feels quite nervous. Is he already there? Is she going to be the first to the table? Why didn’t the waitress tell her? What will she do while she waits? Does she have to stand up when he arrives? Do they shake hands to greet each other? She hasn’t experienced this much social anxiety for a long time.  _ Maybe this is what Hardy feels like all the time,  _ she thinks to herself, and that soothes her a little bit. 

Her inner run-thru of scenarios is interrupted as they pass by the restaurant’s bar and she is shocked to see a familiar face. It shouldn’t be that shocking, given how small Broadchurch is, but the situation she’s in has put her on edge. Perched on a barstool quite cockily is none other than Brian Young (or Dirty Brian, if they’re using office nick-names—courtesy of Shitface). For a split second, Ellie worries that Beth has set her up with Brian, before the logical part of her brain dismisses such a ludicrous idea. He doesn’t fit the description of “tall,” first of all, and Beth knows all about Ellie’s embarrassing history, if you can call it that, with her colleague from SOCO. 

Unfortunately, in the time it takes for them to walk by, Brian has spotted Ellie and greets her enthusiastically. “DS Miller!” he says jokingly. “What are you doing here?” 

Ellie would really rather not say. “Just dinner, what else would I be doing in a restaurant!” she responds a little too sardonically. “I might ask the same of you?”

“My girlfriend’s in the loo, we’re just having some drinks,” he says, eyeing her suspiciously. The waitress has gotten ahead before realising that Ellie has been stalled, and now she’s looking back at her, hiding any traces of annoyance.

“Well, I’d better move along. Enjoy your evening!” says Ellie, hoping that whatever table she’s placed at is well out of sight of the bar. 

She catches up with the waitress and sees that they’re heading for an empty table by the window. From it you can see the harbour, lit up in the distance.  _ So he’s not punctual,  _ Ellie notes to herself, glancing at her watch. She was slightly early in arriving, but now the meeting time has officially passed and he’s not there. She thanks the waitress for the menu and decides that the only thing she can really do while she waits is look over it and maybe decide in advance what she’ll order. She’s perusing the seafood selection when she looks up at the approaching waitress, followed by a tall man. When Ellie’s brain finally registers who it is and that he is indeed headed directly for her table, her jaw drops and her face flushes deep red.

Alec Hardy has stopped in his tracks, his face a mirrored expression of utmost surprise and (could it be?) disgust. 


	7. Table for two (pt. 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is turning out to be a slower burn than i expected! :P i'm making this the last chapter, with the intention of picking up right where this ends in another story, that will be part of a series. fair warning, i will be busier in the next week so it might take awhile to get the next part going
> 
> thanks for reading! errors are my own

Alec Hardy looks as if his pacemaker has begun working overtime to keep his heart in check. He teeters ever so slightly on his feet, still not budging from his spot a few feet from the table. The rain had evidently picked up again, because there is a dripping umbrella hanging from his limp hand, threatening to fall to the floor. His fringe is covering half of his forehead in an unkempt mop of brown/auburn. Clearly dumbfounded, his mouth hangs open as he stares blankly at Ellie, turned out of her chair to face him but still seated. 

“What the bloody hell,” proclaims Ellie after a moment of stunned silence. “What is going on!”

Hardy is still in a daze, whereas Ellie has started functioning at a speed twice as fast as necessary. She grabs her handbag, searching for her phone. “I need to have a chat with Beth, who set you up to this? Is this some kind of joke? Why did I agree to this, Beth has a lot to answer for. The mobile service is rubbish, I’m going to have to step outside.”

Ellie is already making her way towards the exit of the restaurant when Hardy finally snaps to it. He follows her towards the front, stopping to tell the waitress that they’ll be right back. 

“Miller! What’re you doing?” His Scottish drawl reverberates through the restaurant, but does not reach Ellie, who is already out the door. He follows her and finds her furiously scrolling for Beth’s number, attempting to shield her mobile screen from the sudden downpour. She is walking away from the restaurant, even though there is nowhere to go besides the dimly lit car park. Hardy fans out his umbrella and walks over to her, but she is on the defensive.

“Get away, I need to speak to Beth,” she says, indicating that he leave her in peace as she holds the phone to her ear. 

“Millerrrr,” groans Hardy, “it’s a bloody downpour. Come back inside and we can sort this out.” He ducks his head underneath the umbrella, doubling over a little bit so both of them are covered. 

“Bollocks,” mutters Ellie. “She’s not picking up. Fine.” Heaving a big sigh, she keeps huddled under Hardy’s umbrella and they both head back towards their ill-fated table in the back of the restaurant. After she’s shaken off her coat and settled back in her chair, Ellie puts her elbows on the table and clasps her hands on top of the open menu. Alec is still looking stricken, and he avoids her gaze shiftily, unsure where to start the discussion. Ellie spares him the bother. “So, Beth put you up to this, then?”   
  


Hardy shoots her an exasperated glance. “I barely know Beth!”

“Who, then? I take it from your expression that this was just as much of a surprise for you as it was for me, so obviously Beth must have been involved in some way.”

Hardy narrows his eyes, putting the clues together. His face falls into his palms and he shakes his head. “Daisy…”

“Daisy what?”

“Daisy told me… I don’t really remember, I think it was through some friend at school. She told me I was meeting her friend’s divorced mum for dinner, and she practically forced me to go.”

“And you just believed her? You just accepted without knowing any details?”

Hardy falters. “She kept on pestering me about it! I was tired of arguing with her so I just gave in.  _ You  _ can’t say much for yourself either, evidently you fell for the same kind of trick.”

“At least I wasn’t set up by my own kid,” retorts Ellie. “Beth told me I was meeting a friend from her work. I  _ thought  _ I could trust her.” This reminds her to check her mobile, but there are still no messages. “I’ll bet this is Chloe and Daisy’s doing,” she says, pointing her finger at Hardy as if she’d just had the revelation of the century. “I’m going to send Chloe a strongly-worded text. Although she is watching Fred, so I can’t be too mean.” 

“Ach, can we just relax? I mean, we’re here, we might as well eat.”

“Obviously,” spats Ellie. “I just don’t want them to think they’re in the clear.” While she’s typing furiously, Hardy sighs and picks up his menu. 

“Something to drink?” He already seems quite at ease as he scans the wine selection, pausing to look up at Ellie over the rim of his glasses. She’s still engrossed in texting Chloe. 

“Just a glass of the cheapest red is fine for me.” 

Hardy orders two glasses of Malbec when the waitress stops by, and Ellie finally puts down her phone and picks up the menu. “I actually had already decided I was going to order the baked fish of the day before you got here,” she says, closing the menu again. “Late, by the way. Bad form for a first date.” She’s flustered but seems to be calming down. Her hands fly up to her slightly disheveled hair and she starts to fidget. “I’m just going to run to the loo quickly. If the waitress comes, tell her I want the baked fish with cornish potatoes.”

Hardy stares after her before turning back to the stressful task of deciding what to order. The waitress comes by before Miller has returned, so he orders for both of them, settling at the last minute on the cod for himself. Just as Ellie is sliding back into her seat, Hardy’s phone pings. He takes it out of his pocket to squint at the text:

_ D: Let go of your anger and just have fun, dad. xoxo _

He frowns. “What is it?” asks Ellie, checking her own phone, which has received nothing. 

“I haven’t texted Daisy all evening and I just got this,” he says, sliding the phone across the table. Suddenly it clicks. “Wait, did you say Chloe was with Fred tonight? Because Daisy told me she was sleeping over at the Latimers.”

Ellie purses her lips. “I’m sure Daisy’s at my house right this moment. How else would she know so quickly that we’re here and quite mad.” She tuts and takes a large sip of the wine the waitress has just brought. “We ought to bill them for this meal,” she jokes. 

“Well, this is a lot less awkward than being on an actual blind date,” admits Hardy. “I’m quite relieved, to tell the truth.” 

“Why do you think they did this? Set us up, I mean? It’s basically just giving us a night off from being at home… they didn’t have to do it so sneakily. I’m perfectly happy to go out to eat whenever.” Both of them are now completely at ease, neither of them even remotely considering this outing as a date. It’s just Hardy and Miller, off duty. 

“Their idea of a silly prank, I guess,” says Hardy.

“But do you think they really wanted us to end up… actually dating? What’s their end goal here.”

Hardy gives her a dumbfounded look, shrugging his shoulders in confusion. 

“Well, we certainly can’t give them any satisfaction, if that is the case,” she says. “That is not how relationships should start. And it would be dreadfully embarrassing.”

Hardy’s fruitless struggle for a response is spared by the arrival of their food. After a long day at work, and now this confusing situation to deal with, they’d forgotten how hungry they are. The meal goes by in relative silence as they enjoy the dishes. Their conversation reverts to normal banter, with no mention of the “date” issue. 

When the waitress brings the bill, Hardy beats Miller to it. He practically already has his card out, so he hands the bill back to the waitress immediately. Ellie watches him, her hand frozen halfway to her handbag. She admires his profile as he smiles (!) up at the young woman to give her the card.  _ His neck,  _ she finds herself thinking.  _ His beautiful neck.  _ Ellie slaps herself metaphorically. 

“Thank you,” she finally manages to say. 

“You’re paying next time.”

Ellie raises her eyebrows. “Next time? Are we going to play along with their little game, then?”

Hardy backtracks. “Nah, I thought we weren’t going to give them the satisfaction. Especially Daisy.” He imagines the smug look on his daughter’s face if he had to tell her she’d been right all along about him and Miller. “Doesn’t mean we can’t still hang out, though. Outside of work.” He tries to hide the hopeful note in his voice. 

Ellie’s face lights up. “Of course!” she exclaims. “Why don’t we mess with them in return!”

“How do you mean…?” 

“Well, I don’t know exactly, first we’ll have to see their reaction to tonight. We should tell them that it went horribly and that we don’t want them to meddle in our romantic lives anymore. Then we can come up with some harmless prank to play on them in return… I’d have to think about it. Or maybe I can ask Lucy, she’s an expert at pranks.” 

Hardy shakes his head at the idea but doesn’t protest. They get up from the table and head out the door, sharing Hardy’s umbrella until they reach Ellie’s car and say good night. 

And so, the first date that was not a date comes to an end. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah i had to do a reference to fleabag  
(and in the previous chapter it was good omens in case you didn't catch it)
> 
> anyway, thanks to everyone who's followed this little fic! i never would've thought i could write this much fanfiction, but here we are! looking forward to continuing with alec and ellie, and chloe and daisy ;)

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think! I am notoriously bad at completing tasks I set for myself, so if I know that there's even one person interested in reading on, I will be much more likely to make an effort to write more. Thank you!


End file.
